If you find yourself wandering into The Blue Note on any given Monday evening, chances are you’ll come across the warm and welcoming crafting group, Stitch and Bitch.
By the front bar people gather, working on various personal projects; knitting, needle work, crochet and everything in between. The energy is palpable - as everyone works on their respective projects, people are also laughing and sharing stories. While the pretence of the group is a stitching club, there has been an overwhelming number of young people joining in hopes of forging friendships.
Hunger and desire for connection within a community is more real today than ever, especially in Galway. For the co-founders, Emma Harrington and Izzy McMahoon, they noticed this and decided to create this space to foster friendship. “I felt like there were always these people in the street that I would see and think ‘those are cool people I would like to be their friend,” Emma notes. “But I had no idea how to connect with them. I felt I needed a space where we have a common thread, there’s a reason why we’re together. Then we could make that bridge into friendship.”
For over a year now, Monday evenings in The Blue Note have become sacred. No matter if you’re an experienced stitcher or simply interested in starting a new hobby, there is a spot for you at the table. “There’s no worries if you’re a new-comer… it’s always a nice mix of people, and also all skill levels.” There really is such a feeling of inclusion within the group. Once anyone finishes a project, there is a round of applause. Emma shares, “as an adult that never happens you don't get claps anymore and I need that, I need that dopamine!”
One of the greatest human equalisers is our desire for connection. To be able to share something with another person feeds the soul in a special way precisely because it is so rare. Groups like Stitch and Bitch and places like The Blue Note truly nurture a sense of community in Galway. “I think The Blue Note will do that.. It’s a little hub for the people of Galway, if something has to happen they’ll put it on… They’re so good for that.”
Attendance ranges from five or six people to sometimes over twenty. One of the wonderful things about Stitch and Bitch is that it is always there. “I like that people feel comfortable enough to dip in and out of it. There are some people that will come once and then come again months later. I like that because I feel like they needed it that day… It’s an open, easy group. It’s not a class, it's not a workshop. We’re just a friendly face every Monday, if you need it we’re there.”
“It worked out much better than I expected. If it stays going every week, that is more than I could have asked for,” Emma notes. “I just want it to be the way it is… it’s a constant in my life. When there’s constantly moving parts in every other part, this is my one thing that’s always the same.”
Emma’s advice if you’re interested in going? “Bring along a project that you’d like to work on, whether that be knitting, crochet, or embroidery, cross stitch, any form of needle work… Everyone is always included. The most important thing is breaking that first barrier of nervousness… stepping over that and once you get through that there’s a nice group of people waiting for you.”
Stitch and Bitch is every Monday from 7pm to 9pm in The Blue Note, in Galway’s Westend.
All photos by Ciarán MacChoncarraige
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